July 2012

Dear Colleagues:

The Supreme Court has upheld most of the provisions in the current
federal health care reform law, known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
Policies in the ACA have current and future implications for hospital
reimbursement and new payment formulas. These payment models factor in a
number of quality indicators, these now include patient perception of
care and ratings of the hospital experience.

We knew that no matter how the Supreme Court ruled, these quality
indicators would be here to stay and we prepared for it. In essence, the
patient’s voice about the hospital experience has an impact on a
hospital’s bottom line. The tool the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services (CMS) uses to measure patient satisfaction is called HCAHPS
(Health Consumer
Assessment of Health Provider Services).

So how are we doing? For the past several years we have worked on
improving the patient experience and have now increased our HCAHPS
ratings in each of the survey’s 10 domains, including communication
about medication and discharge instructions. We continue to take steps
to improve the patient experience, and there are several more questions
that CMS has added.

Two of the best practices that we have instituted to improve the patient
experience are patient rounds and discharge phone calls.

Rounding for Positive Patient Outcomes
Rounding is a multi-layered program that uses one-on-one meetings with
different constituencies to gauge needs, perceptions and areas for
improvement. At our hospital, we conduct senior leadership rounds on
department heads, department heads rounds on frontline staff and support
departments rounds on other departments. Central to that entire process,
with the most impact for a positive patient outcome, is the nursing unit
leader rounding directly on patients and their families at the bedside.
Nursing unit leaders on their rounds can turn a potentially negative
experience into a positive one.

Discharge or Post-Visit Phone Calls
Experience shows that connecting with patients after discharge can save
lives. Confusion over discharge instructions can lead to a hospital
re-admission. A discharge phone call within 72 hours of discharge allows
nurses to ask key questions like “How are you feeling?” or “Are you
having any pain?” Nurses also verify whether prescriptions were filled
and if follow-up appointments were made. The nurse can identify any gaps
or misunderstandings on the spot.

As you can see, we are very focused on enhancing the patient experience
and expect to see that pay off in terms of quality care and satisfaction
as measured by HCAHPS. Adding these methods required vast organizational
changes. Still, there's a long road ahead. All nurses, doctors,
caregivers and and those in hospital support roles must work
in unison with the same priorities-- patients and their families.
For more information about the hospital’s patient experience programs,
please contact Helen Lavas, Chief Patient Experience Officer, at
(718) 670-2278.

Sincerely,

Stephen S. Mills, F.A.C.H.E.

PEOPLE

We are pleased to announce the following appointment of our
medical and professional staff:

Welcome to Theresa Meany, R.N., M.S.N.,
P.C.S.A., administrative director,
Department of Surgery. Ms. Meany comes to us
from Western Connecticut Medical Group at
Danbury Hospital where she served as operations
administrator.

She earned her bachelor’s degree in
Nursing and master’s degree in Patient
Care Administration Services from Sacred
Heart University in Connecticut.

The hospital welcomes Changduk Lim, M.D., a junior Emergency
Medicine resident at Kyungpook National University Hospital in Daegu,
South Korea, and Eunah Han, M.D., a senior Emergency Medicine
resident from Severence hospital, Yonsei University in Seoul, South
Korea for a one-month observership in the Emergency Room. This
observership is coordinated by Edward Choi, M.D., attending
physician, Emergency Medicine, and international ambassador to South
Korea, American College of Emergency Physicians.

It is an honor for us when our hospital team members attain
professional achievements and when they are recognized by other
organizations:

Pinchi Srinivasan, M.D., director, Neonatology, Department of
Pediatrics, was promoted to the faculty of Weill Medical College of
Cornell University as associate professor, Clinical Pediatrics, New York
Hospital Queens.

Paul Freedman, D.D.S., director, Oral Pathology, was elected
President of the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology.

Burton Wasserman, D.D.S., chairman, Dental and Oral Medicine,
joined 28 physicians and three dentists at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, to
participate in the “Army Medicine Experience,” which included a combat
exercise with Army medics.

Dr. Wasserman serves as the chairman, Advisory Board for Medicine and
Dentistry, U.S. Army, Greater N.Y.

Marta Kazandjian, C.C.C.-S.L.P., director, Speech Pathology,
co-authored, “Verbal Communication for the Ventilator-Dependent Patient
Requiring an Inflated Tracheotomy Tube Cuff: A prospective, Multicenter
Study on the Blom Tracheotomy Tube with Speech Inner Cannula,” which was
published in the journal Head & Neck.

“Failure to Diagnose Breast Cancer Yields $15 Million Verdict,”
co-authored by Alvin Safran, director, Risk and Claims
Management, was published in the premiere issue of Physician Risk
Management in the supplement titled Physician Legal Review &
Commentary. Mr. Safran serves as president, the Association for
Healthcare Risk Management of New York.

The Division of Neonatology from the Department of Pediatrics presented
four research projects at the 2012 Pediatric Academic Societies Annual
Meeting in Boston, Mass. The abstracts were published in the journal
Pediatric Research.

Dr. Srinivasan served as the site principal investigator for the
clinical trial, “Nasal Intermittent Positive Pressure Ventilation Trial
in ELBW infants (<1000 grams birth weight and <30 weeks
gestational age)." New York Hospital Queens was one study center in one
of the largest international, multicentric trials with participation
from 10 countries and 36 centers.

PROGRAMS & PROGRESS

Program News

Transitional Care Unit Opens on 7 South
In partnership with Silvercrest Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation
Center, the hospital opened a new sub-acute transitional care unit on 7
South. Operated by Silvercrest staff, the 16-bed unit provides care for
patients who no longer require acute care but are not ready to move home
or to a skilled nursing facility. Patients in this unit can stay up to
20 days. The transitional care unit is one of 13 approved units
for a New York State demonstration project.

Emergency Room Expansion

Since 2006, five hospitals have closed in Queens. To address hospital
overcrowding, we continue to expand our services and access to
care. We recently celebrated the completion of the
latest expansion of the Emergency Room with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The expansion includes 10 walled, treatment bays, a new nursing station
and the Urgent Care Center (which opened in January). In attendance were
Queens Borough President Helen Marshall, NYS Senator Toby Stavisky,
Council Member Peter Koo, representatives from the Department of
Health and the community, as well as members of the Board of Trustees.
Both the expansion of the Emergency Room and the completion of the
Urgent Care Center were funded by a $4 million HEAL-NY (Health Care
Efficiency and Affordability Law for New Yorkers) grant.

NYHQ is an FDNY-Designated Hypothermia Center
In May, NYHQ became a Hypothermia Center as designated by the New York
City Fire Department (FDNY). In 2009, FDNY created an initiative called
“NYC Project Hypothermia.” The project was created as an effort to
improve the neurological outcomes of resuscitated patients who have
suffered from cardiac arrest. As a Hypothermia Center, our
hospital has hypothermia devices and special training to use hypothermia
therapy to slow down the brain’s demand for oxygen. In a cardiac arrest,
hypothermia therapy has been shown to prevent damage to brain cells.
NYHQ is one of only a few hospitals in Queens to be a designated
Hypothermia Center. For more information, contact Darlene
Merceica, administrative director, Emergency Medicine, at ext. 1430.

Bringing Fun to the Bedside of Sick Children
Unfortunately, some young patients at New York Hospital Queens are too
sick to leave their rooms. Now, these patients can play games and watch
their favorite cartoons and movies at the bedside with a mobile fun
center. Sponsored by Dunkin Donuts, the Starlight Children’s Foundation
has donated an all-in-one portable monitor, DVD player and Wii game
system, to the Pediatric Department at New York Hospital Queens.
Providing entertainment for young patients can help ease
anxiety during hospitalization. The Child Life Program at NYHQ
is dedicated to easing the stress of the children and their
families.

Expansion of Cancer Services for Queens Residents
Each week in Queens, 64 individuals die from cancer and 192 individuals
are diagnosed with cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. The
number of people diagnosed with cancer each week could fill every seat
of our hospital auditorium. New York Hospital Queens is on the
frontlines of cancer, providing treatment, cancer education and free
screenings. In May, our hospital held its annual A Spring Night Gala
that helped raised nearly $1 million towards an expansion of cancer
care. Through the leadership of Prahba and Kanak Golia and George
Heinrich, M.D., chairman, NYHQ Board of Trustees, and his wife, Debra,
the hospital is looking at ways to expand our Cancer Center services.

Celebration of Life Community Program for Cancer Survivors

The hospital held “A Celebration of Life” program for the community
including a presentation by keynote speaker, Curtis Sliwa,
founder of the Guardian Angels, radio personality and prostate cancer
survivor. Cancer specialists from New York Hospital Queens presented
advances in cancer treatment, including Paul Lee, M.D., director,
Thoracic Surgery; Susan Lee, M.D., acting director, The Breast
Center; Akkamma Ravi, M.D.; clinical director, Radiation
Oncology; and Gabriel Jung, M.D., medical oncologist.

Automated Inventory Management Pilot Program in Interventional
Radiology
In high-cost supply areas like Interventional Radiology, tracking the
use of products and maintaining accurate inventory needs to happen as
efficiently as possible. Interventional Radiology is participating in a
new inventory tracking pilot program. The hospital uses high-tech
storage monitoring, such as radio frequency tags on products, and
automated reporting to track inventory usage and to reorder supplies.
The Materials Management Department now has plans to use this
technologically advanced tracking and reporting system in other areas,
such as interventional cardiology and the hybrid OR.

Progress

Congratulations to Best Doctors in New York Magazine

Congratulations to all members of the NYHQ
Medical Staff who were named as “Best Doctors
2012” in New York Magazine. The magazine
extracted a best doctors list from Castle
Connolly Medical Ltd.’s “top doctor” guides. The
guides are composed of physicians who were
nominated by other physicians for being
clinically outstanding. For a complete list of
New York Magazine’s best doctors, visit:
http://nymag.com/bestdoctors. For Castle
Connolly’s listings and methodology, visit:
http://www.castleconnolly.com.

NYHQ Recognized for Employee Wellness
The American Heart Association recognized New York Hospital Queens as a
Gold Fit-Friendly Company. Being a gold level award recipient means that
NYHQ has recognized the importance of a healthy workplace through
creating a culture of physical activity in the work place and providing
support to employees. Among its many initiatives to encourage healthy
living, the hospital established a partnership with Weight Watchers,
developed a Walking Club and offers a complimentary Healthy
Lifestyle Assessment for all employees.
Emergency Medicine Team Serves as Medical Support for Marathon
As a way to extend their community service, physicians from the
Emergency Medicine Department, Sanjey Gupta, M.D., Alison Suarez,
M.D., James G. Ryan, M.D., Cara Brown, M.D., Emergency
Ultrasound fellow, and Emergency Medicine residents William
Apterbach, M.D., Alvin Bulahan, M.D., James Franklin, M.D., and Cindy
Usher, M.D., provided on-site medical support for athletes at the
Allstate 13.1 Marathon at Flushing
Meadows Corona Park.
Patient Experience Office Initiative- Musical Performance in Main Lobby
The live piano music that greets patients and visitors in the hospital
main lobby is an initiative managed by the Patient Experience Office to
enhance the visitor experience. Special thanks to a partnership with
Queens College, Sergey Prokofyev, violinist, and Wei-Hsien
Lien, pianist, from the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens
College, provided a lobby performance.

National Night Out Against Crime
This year, the National Night Out Against Crime will take place on
Tuesday, August 7, 2012. The event is a crime prevention fair with free
giveaways and health and safety information hosted by the New York City
Police Department and community organizations. New York Hospital Queens
plans to participate in the following events:

All events start at 5 p.m. For more information, contact Public Affairs
at ext. 1065.

New York Hospital Queens Day at CitiField -
Sunday, August 12, 2012
New York Hospital Queens is hosting a day of fun
for the family and friends of hospital employees
and physicians. Discounted tickets are on sale
now for Sunday, August 12, on the Field Level in
Centerfield, as the New York Mets take on the
Atlanta Braves on Sunday, August 12. For more
information, contact Julie Varghese,
director, Special Events, at (718) 670-1564.